Video is King: How to Incorporate this Medium into Your Strategy

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Ever since the dawn of YouTube, videos have been a growing part of our marketing and social media strategies. For some time, content ruled as the most important feature of a campaign, which was then usurped by images, which were easier to share and faster to read.

However, a recent study proves that videos are now the most interacted with form of content available:

A recent study conducted by Socialbakers examined more than 670,000 Facebook posts from 4,445 brand pages. Video posts had an organic reach of 8.71 percent, which means nearly nine out of 100 fans saw the posts. By comparison, posts with links had an organic reach of 5.29 percent, text posts had 5.77 percent reach, and photos brought up the rear with only 3.73 percent organic reach. Videos get 3 billion views each day. 27% of brand managers pay to promote video posts.

Clearly, that’s a massive boost for video content! So it should be a no-brainer for companies from all walks of life to start using videos in their marketing and social media campaigns. But what if you’ve never created a video? How do you begin?

Entrepreneur.com has some great tips for first-time video makers:

  • Don’t make the process too complicated.  Try to relax and have fun with the video—there’s no need for a big production budget or an overcomplicated message.
  • Relax before speaking.  Viewers will pick up on any nervous tics or speech; they will be less inclined to share awkward videos. However, if you say “um” or “er” a few times, no need to sweat it; we’re all human!
  • Rehearse what you want to say.  This public speaking rule of thumb applies to videos too! Your speaking shouldn’t sound stiff or overly rehearsed—instead, it should sound natural and friendly.
  • Keep it brief.  While certain kinds of videos may require longer cuts, most videos should aim to be about 2-3 minutes long as to not lose a person’s attention.
  • Enable and encourage comments.  Interacting with your audience will encourage viewers to keep checking your page for updates, or talking about and sharing the video.
  • Incorporate a call to action.  Give viewers a reason to keep watching your videos! Are you running a virtual contest? Teaching users about the history of your company? Challenge viewers to stay in touch with your company so you grow a larger customer base.

Once the video is created, you have a variety of social media sites for posting to choose from. Vines, six second videos that play on a loop, are perfect for teasing products, previewing an event or taking viewers inside the company. Instagram videos last up to 15 seconds and are non-looping; the good news is that these videos can be shared across many platforms, including Facebook. Facebook videos max out at 20 minutes in HD quality and should be used for commercials, fan videos, sending personal messages or showing off charity work, for example. YouTube, of course, has unlimited time restrictions and can be shared across a variety of websites. YouTube is best for showing off the company’s portfolio.

So now that we know why videos are important, how to make videos and where to share them, what about content ideas? Unbounce.com has a few creative suggestions, in addition to the typical video fare:

  • Bring how-to guides to life with product or service demonstrations
  • Showcase glowing customer testimonials
  • Show off your team by introducing and interviewing staff
  • Give viewers a video tour of the office
  • Challenge viewers to a call to action such as a “tell us what you think” video
  • Do a helpful parody video (for example, “Inbound Style” to the tune of “Gangnam Style”)
  • Rather than typing out a reply, create a video reply for Twitter comments
  • Explain a long or complicated process or idea quickly with a whiteboard animation video

With these tips and tricks, it will be no time before your company is creating informative and interesting videos to share on social media! For more information on how we can help you create a best in class marketing and social media strategies, please contact us at info@schoonerstrategies.com.

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